The University of Sydney Business School

Housed in a smattering of handsome Oxbridge-style buildings, the University of Sydney, founded in 1850, is as picturesque as the city it calls home. Fantastic food, a laid-back culture, sun, and surf make this city a desirable place to come and live. And being Australia’s most populous city — a global hub with a population of 4.5 million people — there are also plenty of opportunities for ambitious people. 

At 18 months, in terms of course duration Sydney’s MBA program sits right between the traditional European and American ones. With just 50 students per intake, this is one of those MBAs where the professors know your name and the promise of a personal touch if more than just marketing spiel. 

The class is international, with 19 nationalities in the most recent cohort, and as you would expect attracts students from Southeast Asia, but also some from as far afield as Western Europe and the US and including participants from Lebanon, Barbados and Luxembourg. They study alongside a smattering of home-grown participants, who make up about 10 percent of a class.   

Students are split 50-50 between those who are looking for a career change, and those who want to accelerate their careers in their current sector, says the school. About one in ten want to leave the corporate world and to unleash their entrepreneurial flair. 

The program is grouped into three units of study, focused on personal and interpersonal skills development; Business knowledge and skills development; and Building future enterprises, and finishes with a capstone management project. The school also says that its program always follows what students want, and it is adding new elements on negotiation skills, and talking more about purpose-driven business. 

Another focus is going to be making use of the full university to deepen what the business school is able to offer in cutting-edge areas. For example, there are plans to tap into the knowledge of the physics department by getting their academics to teach about AI, and to use engineers to teach robotics. 

Guy Ford, MBA Director 

When we set up this new full-time MBA in 2018 we asked employers what they needed, which is why our MBA is designed to be highly experiential. We know that a lot of people who come into our classrooms want to network, and they want to learn new ways of thinking and problem-solving from professionals from other sectors. 

One benefit of the diverse classes we have is that students very quickly realise that they might think they are good at solving problems, but they are often solving the wrong problem. Systems thinking is an important skill they will learn in our classes. 

We know very well that some of the best ideas come out of casual conversations. We have one former student who set up a business in the medical marijuana sector in the U.S., and that business came out of a conversation at lunchtime. This is why we have a small class, and make sure it is very much a face-to-face experience. That is hard to scale, and why we will always remain small.